Container for transporting stacked commodities



Oct. 1.2,` 19,37. G. c. WOODRUFF 2,095,515

` CONTA'INER FOR TRASPOTING STACKED COMMODITIES origina Filed March 21, 1935 2 sheets-sheet 1 :FJ-f5.5..

Oct. 12, 1937. G. c. WOODRUFF 2,095,515

CONTAINER FOR lTRANSPORTING STACKED COMM'ODITIES Original Filed March 2l, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 (Eq Qq NQS .Nrs

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QW 64M/@M ATTORNEY Patentedoct. 12, 1937 UMTED STATES izrs .PATENT ori-lcs CONTAINER FOR TRANSPORTING STACKED COMMODITIES;A

YGraham 0.*Wcodrui, Bronxville, N. Y., assignerv tovThe L. C. L. Corporation, a corporation of Delawarer originar-application March 21,11935, serialiNo. A 12,294, now Patent No.. 2,061,495. Divided and this application December 31, 1935, Serial No.

' This invention relates: to a new and improved construction of container for transportating common brick, face brick, hollow' tile or other p like commodities of known size which are commonly transported in stacks or large quantities at a .time in railway oars, or otherY transport vehicles, andthe'present applicationis a division of my prior application Serial No. 12,294, led

Marcher, 1935, Patent No, 2,061,495.

.Oneobjectof the invention is to provide acongta'iner whereby aquantity of brick or other arti- "cles in tieror'stack form may be loaded as a unit, transp'ortedlwith other likeunits, and unloaded as"fa"unit, so that'the original stack or 115 `tier formof the `unit may be preserved and de- A still Yfurther object ofthe inventionis toprovide a container whereby brick in tier or stackV "formas it comes 'from adrying kiln may be directly loaded in the container for transport in a containercar to a destihationepoint for removal and` disposition in stack `form'until their 'Y use is desiredffor building Verreurstruction or other purpose. V'

A sun further cbect of the invention' is to provide a container wherebyfsuch stack or tier Vunits 35 of brick brother" articls'fnay Vbe lreadily loaded into containers on a container car and unloaded therefrom into containers on ano-ther transport vehicle inj a ready, convenient and time saving manner.

videV a container'Y whereby brick or other. articles in stack or tier units.l may be loaded, transported and unloaded with a material savingof time and ylabor over prior methods, without liability of Vfracture or other damage to the articles andV so as to avoid `the losses resulting therefrom, and in such manner as to effect great economy in handling and-transporting the articles and in enabling a greater. quantity of articles to be car- 50 rier vehicle. e Y v A still furtherV object of the invention is to provide a novel constructionv of YVcontainer which may be loadedjand unloaded by the use of a liftingV 55 fork or other mechanical means while onr'ave- A still further object of the invention is to proried ata time on a container car Orother car- 'e' claims. (o1. 294-62) hicle, loading and unloading platform lor other support, or one or more of which in loaded condition may be lifted onto or off a car, platform or other support after being loaded in any suitable manner, and whereby 4oneV or more loaded containers maybeliftedioff a car, loading platforml or other support and unloaded by dumping "action Yif desired.'VV

`Wi`th`i these-and other objects in view, the inventioriV 'consists inthe Vnovel construction, combinatioh` and relationship Aof parts hereinafter moreffully described and claimed, reference being had to? the accompanying* drawings, in"which:

is'a front vvelevation of` one of the containers. A

Fig. Zisan end elevation thereof.

3"i`s a topplanview of the container.

Fig. 4 is'across-section through the container.

V1*"1'gsf45 and ,6v aredetail-views showing the construction of the" lifting links and hooks on a container.

Fig. 7 is a transverse section` through the car showingthe-a-rrangement of containers of the longitudinalfnd` transverse sets therein.

iFig. 8j is a sectional fview through a container showingfin 4 e'fbelevaton the lifting fork and application'in` applying a stack of illustrating its:

brick to 'or 'removing a stacklfro'm the container.

Y Each container A comprises abody, =preferably of,4 oblong. rectangular formyand having a bottom"wall"or floor-structure, a rear wall and vtwo endwalls, sfaid rear and end walls being made .of spaeed outerand inner sheets a, a connected andi heldfspacedby channeled or other, suitably :shaped spacingand'stiffening 'members' a2.. The

container as thus constructed is open at itsv front a3 and its top a4 and is provided at its bottom with supporting members or feet a5 for supporting the container upon the floor of Ytl're'car and -which are adapted Vto serve as skids or runnersY on which'the container may be slidably shifted in the car. The end walls of the container are provided, at the top and near the corners of the container, with lifting links a6 for connectionV with the sling of a crane, whereby the container may be swung into and out of the car and otherwisemanipulated. TheV end walls of the con- Vtainer-are also provided with pivotally mounted lifting hooksa7 for'engagement with a lifting fork fora similar purpose. Each of `these hooks may advantageously be provided with an abutmentprojectional forthe purpose of preventing any possibility of the-stacked load catching on the hooks proper, when being lifted from the f Y container by the fork, in cases where a hook has not been thrown back to the dotted non-interfering position from the full line position shown in Fig. 22. Assuming for example that any hook has not been thrown back to a non-interfering position, but remains in the interfering position shown in full lines in Fig. 22, it will be thrown back into the clear when the upper tier of brick in the stack contacts the under or sloping side of Y the projection a7 as the load is being lifted vertically from the container. The projection al does not come into play when a stack of brick is being lowered into the container, as under these conditions the hook if not thrown back out of the way will Contact the underside of the lifting fork without tendency to disrupt the stack. The bottom and body walls of the container may be made of sheet steel of proper kind and gage and properly stiffened to provide a container of maximum strength and durability. The open-front and open-topped chamber of the container is adapted to receive freight or lading to be transported, herein shown in the form of a stack or tier unit B of brick. As stated, the bricks composing this stack or tier may be laid upon one another in the manner in which green brick are placed in tier or stack form on a kiln truck for drying or curing treatment in a brick kiln. The upper surfaces of the bottom of the container are provided with a series of upstanding supporting and guiding cleats or ribs a8 on which the stacks of brick rest and whereby the lowermost bricks of the stack are held elevated and spaced from the bottom of the container. These cleats or ribs serve also as guide members and are properly spaced to form guidcways or channels a9 for the reception and movement of the fingers or tines of the lifting fork in the operation of the fork in loading a stack of brick into a container and unloading the same therefrom. The cleats or ribs may be made of wood or other suitable material. Instead of forming the container with a solid bottom wall, a perforate type of bottom may be used, i. e., one in which thevcleats a8 rest on metal supports spaced or otherwise constructed or arranged to leave the spaces between the cleats themselves andthe cleats and the side walls open to allow brokenV brick and other refuse to drop through instead of accumulating in said spaces.

What I claim isz- 1. A container for transporting stacked articles comprising a container body formed of rigidly united bottom, back and side walls and open at the front and top for the insertion and removal of a stack of articles horizontally or vertically through said open front or top, spaced supporting elements secured to and extending transversely on the underside of the bottom wall between said side walls and serving to hold the container elevated above an underlying supporting surface and to brace the bottom wall, lifting elements at the top of the side walls of the container whereby the container may be connected with a lifting mechanism, and spaced stack supporting cleats extending in parallel relation between the back wall and open front of the container and resting on and secured to the bottom wall, said cleats serving to further reinforce said bottom wall and to support a stack resting thereon vertically spaced from the bottom wall, the spaces between the cleats providing guideways for the passage of the tines of a lifting fork through the open front of the container beneath the stack to allow removal of the stack thereby from the container.

2. A container for transporting stacked articles comprising a container body open at front and top and comprising rigidly united bottom, back and side Walls, the back and side walls .each consisting of spaced outer and inner wall sheets, channeled spacing and stifening members disposed between and rigidly connected to the spaced wall sheets of the back and side walls at intervals between the bottom and top of the container, the uppermost spacing and stiifening members being disposed substantially lush with the upper edges of the walls to close the spaces between the sheets, and lifting elements secured to the uppermost spacing and stiffening members of the side walls and projecting above the top of the container.

3. In a container for transporting a stack of articles and comprising a body open at front and top and formed of bottom, side and end walls, lifting elements' pivoted to the container at the upper edges of its side walls so as to swing inwardly and outwardly toward and from the open top of the container between inoperative and operative positions, each of said members being pivoted at its lower end to the container and provided at its upper end with a hook for engagement with a lifting device, and each of said members being provided between its pivoted and hooked ends with an inwardly extending projection adapted in the event that said member is disposed in its operative position during removal. of a stack through the open top of the containerv to be engaged by the stack to swing the member outwardly to its inoperative position.

GRAHAM C. WOODRUFF. 

